Perfect Enemy
by dangerousandbeautiful
Summary: Edward and Bella's families are enemies. They fall in love, keeping their affair secret. Will anyone find out? What happens when they are ordered to kill each other? AU Human but gifts remain. Sci-fi romance Vampires become superheroes. All human OOC
1. Prologue

Perfect Enemy Prologue:

A/N: **Okay, this is an excerpt from a later chapter. Its not the exact same because I made it a little shorter, but you get the idea. Here's a taste of what's to come!**

_Tap tap tap! _I rushed to my window immediately at the familiar sound and opened it as quietly as I could. Sure enough, there was my beautiful, bronze haired prince, hanging onto my windowsill, a smile plastered on his face, come to save the damsel in distress. Me.

"Edward! What are you doing here?" I whisper yelled. Tears fought their way into my eyes. "If they find you, they'll kill you!" His smile turned into a frown, his eyes full of sadness.

"I'm sorry. I just…I was so worried that I would never see you again…So worried that you would be hurt because of me. So help me God, Bella, if those bastards lay one finger-"

"They're not going to hurt me, Edward. Aro likes my power too much to get rid of me. But you, I could never forgive myself if they killed you, Edward. I love you far too much to ever live without you," I whispered. I would have helped him into my room if there wasn't the possibility that he would dirty my carpet from climbing two stories and someone would see it. The tears flowed freely now, running hot down my face. I was so afraid that someone would see him.

"And I love you far too much to let them get away with this, Bella. Listen, I thought about it, and I came up with one solution. It seems to be the only thing we have left, love. It's going to be hard, but it's the only way we can be together," he said. His expression was hopeful, his crooked smile in place. I noticed his eyes were a darker green than usual and he had purplish bruises under them, as if he hadn't been sleeping. I had not been sleeping, either, but I felt horrible that this affected him, too. My poor, innocent, angelic boy had to suffer because of the love we shared, because of my family's hatred for his family. Could we ever just be happy?

A sob escaped me as I said, "I'm listening." He smiled sadly again, and his next few words made me completely lose it.

"Run away with me, Bella."

**A/N: Wow that sounds like Romeo and Juliet, doesn't it? But I promise that I did not get the storyline from Shakespeare! I actually got this idea from Watchmen, lol. Anyway, this story is a bit weird…mostly a sci-fi romance, so it's probably not for everyone, but then again, Twilight was a sci-fi romance, too! Reviews make me want to write more, so if you like it, you know what to do!**


	2. Chapter 1: Deja Vu

Chapter One

Deja Vu

I was watching myself. My younger self, my nine-year-old self. I looked down, confused. Waving my hands in front of my face, I saw that I was holographic. I looked like a ghost, I was so transparent. I felt my face and my hair. It was definitely not the same as the little boy in front of me. The child in front of me had a bowl cut, the same bowl cut I had hated all those years ago. My hair now was shorter. I was so much taller. I looked back at my young self. He never noticed me; it was like watching a movie. He, well, technically I, was sitting on a swing at the local Chicago playground. I looked around. Carlisle was sitting on a bench, reading a newspaper, glancing over every few minutes to make sure his son was alright.

There were no other children around. Little Edward Cullen looked bored. I knew why no one was around. It was the beginning of the end. Times were bad, very bad. Evil had started to spread though the country after the Volturi came to America. Aro, the leader of the Volturi, assassinated everyone who stood in his way. No one could stop him. Not even us.

I heard another child's laughter. I turned to the source. I suddenly remembered this; it was total déjà vu. The cute, bell-like laughter belonged to a little girl with long brown hair, and she was wearing a cute little pink summer dress. She was running toward the swing set that I was at, but when she saw that another kid was there, her laughter stopped abruptly as if she got caught doing something that she wasn't supposed to. My younger self stared at her, like he'd never seen another girl in his life. In truth, I probably hadn't other than my sisters. She stared back for a few seconds and then sat two swings away from me.

"Hi," my nine-year-old self said. I smiled. Even then I was a little stud. I knew the look on his face. It was the same expression I still wore today when I saw something I wanted. He thought the little girl was pretty with her long brown hair and big brown eyes and little heart shaped face. She looked back at him with wide eyes, not expecting him to talk to her. Probably not wanting to be rude, she smiled back without saying anything.

"What's your name?" little Edward asked. I wanted to laugh. My attempts at flirting worked even when I was nine years old. He smiled at her crookedly. How many times had I used that smile since then? Not much, seeing as I never really saw many new people.

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers," she said in a small voice.

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers, either, but I'm still talking to you," my persistent child self said. He got up and sat in the swing next to her. He looked over at Carlisle to see if he was paying any attention, the sneak. He stuck a hand out for her to shake.

"My name is Edward," he said. She shook his hand with a curious expression.

"People call me Bella, but my real name is Isabella. My mom said she named me that because it means 'beautiful' in Italian," she told him shyly. I smiled, my seventeen-year-old self and my nine-year-old self. This was the epitome of cuteness, two kids meeting for the first time.

"That's a pretty name, Bella. _I _think you're beautiful, too," he said. It was a good thing they couldn't see or hear me because I was roaring with laughter. My flirting worked, though, because the little girl from my memories grinned and blushed.

Suddenly an older woman's voice called out for Bella. The woman was running towards us looking harried and once she looked at me, she gasped. "Bella! What did I tell you about running away? Come here!" she grabbed Bella and looked at me with wide eyes.

"Edward!" Carlisle called nervously. I remembered being curious about why he seemed so alarmed….so…scared. There was fear in his voice. He ran up to my young self and I got off the swing. He put his hand on my shoulder. I could see his hand shaking. The woman and Carlisle looked at each other. Carlisle glanced at the little girl, and then back at the woman.

"Didyme," he stated in recognition.

"Carlisle," she recognized him, too. I heard struggling voices somewhere near the park. "You should go now," Didyme said, looking around. She looked nervous now. I looked at Carlisle. I saw the fear in his features. My younger self and the little girl Bella were looking at each other, as if trying to ask each other what had their parents so frazzled.

"Come, Edward, we must leave," Carlisle said, turning away from the woman and the girl.

"But, Daddy, I want to stay and play with my friend Bella," the boy said.

"I'm sorry, Edward, maybe another time," Carlisle said more forcefully, grabbing me and walking away quickly. Little Edward had no trouble keeping up, of course, but as they ran off, he looked back at the little girl with a small wave.

"Bye, Bella," he called sadly.

"Bye, Edward," she waved her small hand back.

I awoke with a jolt, sitting straight up in my bed. I sighed. That memory had been occurring in my dreams often lately, more often than usual. I never saw the Bella girl again, though I was sure she'd be my age by now if she was even alive. Over the years, the events of that day replayed in my dreams, but lately I dreamed the same thing over and over again. Was it supposed to be a sign or something? It always confused me. I always wondered what happened to that little girl. Carlisle explained to me when I was older why we had to leave that day.

Once, we were the most powerful group of gifted people alive. People worshipped my family and everyone in their clan. The Denalis and the Cullens were respected by all citizens. Years ago, before I was even born, the world was peaceful and happy. The Cullens and the Denalis watched over the world. They were kind of like superheroes, except not all of them had gifts. Carlisle could heal people, but only if the person's heart was still beating. Like if someone had a cut or a broken leg, he could touch it and the person would be healed instantly. If the person's heart stopped beating, essentially dying, then it wasn't possible for him to save that person. He started out as a doctor, but everyone found out what he could do, and people started to pressure him. Carlisle's human. He can't save everyone. One of his patients couldn't be saved, and the patient's family went after Carlisle and tried to kill him. My father was raised by an officer in the army and he was a skilled fighter, so he wasn't scared of these people, but he quit his job anyway, knowing that the situation would happen again. So he saved people on the down low, which was how he met my mother, Esme. It became an everyday thing, and soon enough people started to recognize him as some kind of superhero. Esme had no gift, but after begging Carlisle to let her help, he trained her, and they fought crime as a duo. Other gifted people, the Denalis, came to him and asked to help him.

Eleazar had the gift of knowing what kind of gift others had. He could tell just by looking at someone what they could or couldn't do. His wife, Carmen, was just his wife. She didn't want to be a part of the crime-fighting. Sasha, Carmen's sister, had three girls named Irina, Kate, and Tanya. Sasha's husband left her beaten and with three children. She hunted him down and killed him. She loved justice so much, she joined with Carlisle and Eleazer. Her oldest daughter, Irina, was old enough to help, too. Citizens of America loved them all. Statues were put up in their honor. They were like human Supermen. Years passed…Esme and Carlisle settled down and had Emmett, Alice, and me. Crime wasn't a big deal anymore. No one dared to pass The Elect, as they were called. At least, not until the Volturi came along. News had spread around about an evil squad in Volterra in Italy. Aro, Caius, and Marcus were brothers who dreamed of taking over the whole world. The Elect wasn't really worried about it until they found out these men were gifted, too. And they were seeking other gifted people as well to aide them. By the time they took over all of Europe, there were over nine gifted people in the group. They terrorized cities, killed thousands of people. Then they set out for Africa. When Africa was theirs, the new target was North America. They were unstoppable. Aro was obsessed with seeking out new gifts for his clan, and he heard about us. He knew that my family used their gifts for good, but he tried to get my father on his side anyway. Carlisle turned him down, of course, and then tried to fight him when he planned to take over America, but even with the Denalis help, it was useless. Since Carlisle refused to join, Aro wanted him killed so that he wouldn't get in the way. The Volturi began to hunt down The Elect and Irina and Sasha were killed. Esme grew terrified that she would lose one of us, and begged Carlisle to let us flee, to go into hiding. Emmett was fourteen, I was eight, and Alice was six. Carmen and Eleazer adopted Tanya and Kate, and they all fled with us to Chicago. Aro still wanted all of us dead. He knew that most gifted people's offspring inherited the "super-gene," and he became scared that Alice, Emmett, Tanya, Kate, and I would grow up to defeat him. That was when I met Bella. I knew none of this then. I just knew that we went from having everything in the world to having almost nothing and moving from place to place. I learned that the woman in the park with the little girl was Didyme, Marcus's wife. She was supposed to be helping the Volturi find us, which was why Carlisle freaked out when he recognized her. Aro eventually killed her. Carlisle says he thinks it was because she let us get away. Bella had been Marcus and Didyme's daughter. I asked Carlisle if he ever found out what happened to her, if she was still alive or not, and his answer was always vague. He didn't know. I always hoped that if she was still alive, she wouldn't be a monster like her family.

They were horrible. With the knowledge of the "super-gene," Aro wanted gifted people to breed with gifted people so that there would be generations of super humans. It was disgusting. That poor little girl. I thought of her…every day. She lost her mother, possibly the only good person that was in the Volturi. Who raised her? Was she still alive? Did she remember the little boy at the park who thought she was pretty? Was she a monster like her father and his brothers? Did she murder just for fun? What would she look like now?

_I'll bet she's beautiful now._ _If she's even alive._

Oh well. It didn't really matter, anyway. I would never see her again. I hadn't seen her in the last nine years. We fled to Forks, Washington. About two years after meeting Bella, we had nothing left. No home, no food, nothing. We lived in an old rundown cabin, hiding from our enemies. Carlisle was convinced that it was safe and that he could get a job as a doctor under a different name. So that's what he did. We were home-schooled. Public schools were out of the question, partly because the whole country was taken over by the Volturi and most schools were closed, and mostly because we were gifted and still wanted. People would notice our abnormalities. Emmett could lift a car as if it were a feather. Alice could see the future. Her visions weren't always what truly happened, though. The future can change. And me…well I got lucky. I ended up with two gifts. Actually, not two gifts seeing as I thought one of them was a curse. My favorite was the fact that I could run faster than the speed of light. It wasn't always good, though, because I would run so fast, my shoes would catch fire. Esme always complained about having to buy me new shoes, so I didn't really run fast unless I had to. It sucked because when I ran as fast as I could, it felt like I was flying, but I never got to use my gift. We had to appear normal, and my ability would never go unnoticed. And then there was my curse…I could read minds. I didn't discover that gift until I hit puberty. I loved it at first because I knew when someone was lying to me. But then I couldn't stop it. Thoughts that I didn't want to hear flooded my mind without my being able to control it. The worst was when I had to hear my _parents_ during their alone time. Their thoughts…weren't exactly what I wanted to hear.

It only got worse. One time, about a year ago, I heard the thoughts of a rapist about to attack a young girl. I followed his thoughts. I always wanted to be like my father…fighting crime and saving people. I beat the shit out of the guy and the girl thanked me and ran off. I thought for sure that Carlisle would be proud of me, but instead he was furious. He kept asking me if I wanted to ruin our family now that we'd finally successfully made a decent living. He thought the girl was setting a trap for me to see if I was one of the Cullens. I told him he was absurd and that I wasn't just going to let her die, and he said that that was the attitude that had gotten us into this mess. His attitude. His drive to help people had the most powerful clan in the world after our throats.

Soon after that, Carlisle found Jasper. Jasper could control all emotion in a room. He was sent to an asylum, which was where Carlisle found him. As his appointed doctor, Carlisle freed Jasper of the insanity ward, and we adopted him, adding another gift to our home. Alice took a great liking to him and they were lovebirds soon after. I liked Jasper, but from his thoughts I knew he was jealous of me. He was a good guy, but he loved power, and he wanted to have more than one gift like I did. His sister, Rosalie Hale, had no gift, but when their parents committed suicide months later, she came to live with us, thus starting Emmett and Rosalie. My family started to question if she possibly had a gift like Heidi, one of the Volturi. I didn't think so. They said that she could lure people with her looks, particularly men, and could convince them to do what she wanted, but she never had that effect on me. I thought she was pig-headed. She was so full of herself, I couldn't figure out why she was with my brother. A mirror and a dildo seemed like they would satisfy her every need. We never got along. And this was all made worse by the fact that I had to hear their every thought. One time Jasper was thinking about Alice naked and I went a little crazy.

I tried running away once. The thoughts, the feelings, everyone's memories and misery were all replayed in my mind. One day I couldn't take it anymore and snuck out late. My father always warned me what would happen if one of us Cullens were caught, but I never really paid any attention. I was so fast that no one could even see me when I ran, and even if someone would try to hurt me, I would hear it in his mind first. I told Carlisle this, but he said that it might not work that way. I learned that he was right just two days later. I snuck out to my favorite spot just past the city, my meadow. It sounded girly and stupid, but I loved my meadow. When you live in a world full of turmoil, chaos, and evil for so long, you begin to appreciate nature. My meadow was so quiet. I couldn't hear anyone's thoughts, anyone's miseries. It was peaceful. I would go there to clear my head. Carlisle really didn't want anyone to leave the house because of the danger, but I was always gone and back before anyone even noticed. Two members of the Volturi had apparently known of my abilities, because they followed me one night with blank minds, not thinking anything so that I would not grow suspicious. I later found out that their names were Felix and Demetri, and they attacked me that night. I got away, but it wasn't easy. My speed saved me. I'm strong but I can't take on two super sized mass murderers. That's Emmett's specialty. I ran home and notified my family, and we were already out of that state two ours later. I agreed with Emmett and Jasper. They said that we should just take them on and fight so that we wouldn't have to keep running like this, but Esme had a fit, saying that she would not lose any of us to those monsters. We moved to Washington, hoping to start our lives…_again._

I sighed. There was no explanation for this. Those big brown eyes came back to my mind, haunting.

I was thinking about what the girl would look like now when I heard Emmett knocking on my door. He wanted to go somewhere.

"Come in."

"Hey, I'm bored. You've been sleeping all day. How about me, you, and Jazz go somewhere? Guys night out?" he said hopefully.

"Yeah, I guess." _What else is there to do?_

We grabbed Jasper and headed off to the bowling alley, one of the few places open anymore. Everywhere I looked, I saw boarded up buildings, old cars rotting away in the streets. People rarely traveled by car anymore because if you bought a car, it was likely stolen days later. There were tons of crime because there was no government to stop it. Policemen no longer existed. The Volturi were large in number now, spread out all over the country doing Aro's bidding. The Volturi only came out at night though. They were like vampires or something, killing people in the dark for fun, damaging everything in sight. They wore dark cloaks like in that movie _Underworld._

We were out later than usual. After bowling a few games, we got a bite to eat and Emmett and Jasper wanted to see the new Saw movie, saying there was nothing like a bloody, scary movie to watch when the world is coming to an end. I didn't want to go with them; I just wanted to go home. It was getting close to midnight and I started walking home alone when I saw a few men, about seven of them following a girl down the street. She was alone. They kept whistling at her. I couldn't see her face, but she had long brown hair billowing down to her waistline. She was thin, wearing a long jacket up to just above her knees. She was walking fast, trying to get away from them. The men disgusted me with their thoughts. I tried seeing her face through their minds, but all they could see was her back facing them. I searched to hear her terrified thoughts, but I could hear no fear. I tried to listen closer but nothing came from her. It was like her mind was a complete brick with no thought or feeling. That was strange, but I reminded myself it was of little importance at the moment. She was in danger.

The men stopped abruptly and started whispering to each other. One of them said to split up and they would herd her into an alleyway where they would "all have a good time." Three of them cut around a building and started running around it to cut her off. I followed the other four that still had their eyes on her. I was so angry that I couldn't think. The perverts kept undressing her with their minds, shoving into her until she bled from the inside out. I saw the alleyway they were planning on getting her into. The four behind her started chasing her and she started running. The other three came out of nowhere and started running toward her. She looked around, not screaming or even looking scared.

That was when I saw her face.

Her heart shaped face, the big brown eyes, and long pin straight brown hair that was so much the same and also so different from the girl's in my dreams. I stopped in my tracks. This had to be her. It was dark and I hadn't seen her in nine years, but I knew it was her, the little girl from the playground. She was alive after all this time. And she was about to be raped and murdered.


	3. Chapter 2: Beautiful and Deadly

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. Don't sue me.

Chapter Two: Beautiful and Deadly

Song for this chapter: _Beautiful Dirty Rich _by Lady Gaga. I had trouble deciding which song I wanted, but this one felt right. I'm a big fan of girl power…like in Mr. and Mrs. Smith when Angelina Jolie was kicking ass. Now, I'm a straight woman…but that shit was hot! So if you liked Elizabeth Swan with a sword in Pirates of the Caribbean, then you'll probably like this chapter. I didn't give Bella a gun or a sword, though, because that would just make it too easy for her. I want her to kick some ass…

K, we left off where Bella is being 'chased' by several men, and Edward remembers Bella from years ago. He's mad…and protective, as usual.

Emotion fled from me. No, I had emotion. One emotion--pure rage. Forgetting that this girl was supposedly raised by our enemy and possibly was a part of their charade, I ran after them, planning to tear these sick fucks limb from limb. I felt strangely protective of her. I couldn't explain it. Carlisle's words about being careful ran through my head, but I didn't care. They would _not _hurt the girl who had starred in my dreams for the past few years. From their minds, I watched as she turned her head around again, probably looking for an escape, when she saw the other men coming toward her, trying to herd her. She didn't even look scared. She looked like she was concentrating hard. _Why doesn't she scream? _I saw her run into the alley, the men right behind her. A few of them were getting hard just thinking about her little body shaking with fear under them while they took advantage of her one by one. I ran faster but I didn't use my super speed until I was sure I was out of view of any witnesses. I could hear the commotion from where I was.

_Not her!_

I finally got there and my jaw dropped at what I saw. Blurs of white and black flashed before my eyes. The girl was fighting them! And she was _winning! _I looked around. Two of the men were already on the ground, presumably dead with blood gushing from both of their ears. She had the utmost look of concentration on her face. She wasn't scared at all. Actually, she appeared to be enjoying herself as she pulled one of the guy's heads into her knee hard. I heard the sickening_ clank_ sound that was his skull making contact with her kneecap. Damn. She hit him in just the right spot with just the right amount of force to kill him. She knew how to fight. I hadn't even considered that when I ran after to help her. Of course she would know how to fight. She was part of the Volturi. I kept looking for ways to help her, but I could never find a place to jump in. She was beating the living shit out of them…And enjoying every second of it.

One of them ran away when he realized they weren't dealing with a regular young woman, and I caught him before he could get out of his punishment. I grabbed him by the back of his head and his throat and slammed him against the wall of the alley hard, knocking him out. I turned back to the girl. Her unnaturally long, straight hair swung around her as she kicked and punched. Only three were still standing, and she took them all at the same time. One grabbed her from behind and tried throwing her down, but her hands were still free. She reached up and gouged out his eyes and then elbowed him in the nose while kicking another guy in the face.

It would have been disgusting if she hadn't been so damn sexy.

The man let go of her instantly and she turned around and grabbed his head with two hands. I looked away when I realized what she was about to do. I didn't see it, but I knew she broke his neck. While she did that, though, the other one that she kicked in the face tried running up to her. She looked off guard, so I moved in to stop him, but then something happened. A shield…or was it air?…something transparent shaped like an oval covered the girl. Was she doing that? She was half kneeling, half standing with her arms in front of her. He was running toward her and he smashed into the glass-like field covering her and keeled over. The thing around her was blocking him from getting to her, like some sort of fore field. He got up again, determined to defeat her, but he was exhausted, breathing hard and barely able to stand up. The last one tried to run, and again, I took care of him quickly, eager to get back to the show.

Yeah, this was infinitely better than _Saw_. I had the urge to sit down and grab some popcorn.

The girl had an expression that said _I'm waiting._ The last guy just walked up to her, defeated, but still trying to keep his pride. His hands swung out dumbly to grab her throat and she kicked him in the nuts. He grabbed his crotch and keeled over again for the last time, hardly breathing. Then she started kicking his face, breaking his nose, busting up his eyes. Finally, looking satisfied, she stopped and looked around, admiring her handiwork. I wanted to laugh at her cute smile, but I was still confused by the fact that her mind was still silent to me.

I cleared my throat. "Well….at least they all died happy," I said to her, gesturing to the obvious tents they all had, their erections all frozen in death. She turned around, finally acknowledging my presence with a murderous look.

I put my hands up in surrender. I was actually a little scared of her, to be honest.

The girl looked me up and down as I did the same to her. Her expression seemed to soften for a second as her eyes met mine. She was wearing all leather, like Catwoman or something but without the silly mask. She was so pale, as if she never saw sunlight. Her eyes were deep pools of brown chocolate, with long, dark eyelashes covering them. Her face was the same one from my dreams, only matured and more feminine. Her hair was still pin straight as if nothing overexerting had just happened, flowing down her shoulders onto her thin back. She had leather pants on that fit her like a second skin, and her shirt was more like a jacket, also leather and fitted with a zipper that ended where her heart would be. It had quarter length sleeves and she had cleavage from high heaven. The jacket cut off right at her waistline so that I could see a few inches her creamy white, muscular stomach. She had flat boots on. They weren't as flattering as everything else on her, but still sexy. I had been half expecting her to be wearing heels.

She was absolutely beautiful. Like one of those demonic angels. Beautiful and deadly. She walked up to me, her glare back in full force. Her gait reminded me of a feline's--sexy and feminine. She looked up at me, being almost a foot shorter. Her hands were on her hips. So this was the girl that haunted my memories and my dreams. Here she was, standing right in front of me as we had done so long ago. She was the first girl I ever thought was beautiful and now she was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. I didn't even care that she was my "enemy." I didn't care that her whole family was evil and wanted me dead. All I cared about was that she was here now with me. What a small world.

She just stared at me like I offended her or something.

"What?" I said.

"I didn't need your help," she said coldly, gesturing to the men I got rid of for her.

"Obviously not," I said, holding in a chuckle. She simply stared at me again. What was she thinking? She must have a gift that blocked her mind from being penetrated. Of course she would have a gift; she was a part of them and they all had some sort of gift. But why did her gift have to be a shield? It was like the one person's mind that I wanted to hear was covered by a brick wall. It wasn't fair.

The girl walked around me slowly, circling me as if trying to analyze me.

"You look familiar," she said, "have I threatened you before?"

I chuckled, unable to hold it in that time. Did she possibly remember me? Me, the boy with the bowl cut who had made her blush nine years ago? No, she couldn't remember me. I thought about her all the time because I kept having dreams of her. The only thing that hadn't changed about me was my hair and eye color. Maybe that was what triggered a memory in her brain…the memory of me.

_Please remember me…And don't kill me…_though a death by her would be a pretty nice, not to mention erotic, way to die…

"Um, I don't think so. But you look familiar, too. What's your name?" I asked. I was positive it was Bella, but making sure couldn't hurt, plus I didn't want to scare her by seeming stalker-ish…though the girl was probably fearless.

_Oh, I already know your name is Bella. I have dreams about you all the time and I've been hoping to see you since we met when we were younger. _Yeah, okay. That would definitely go over well. I might as well join the sick men on the ground.

She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. It was cute and sexy as all hell.

Then she started to walk away from me, grabbing her discarded coat from the floor of the alley. I followed, utterly intrigued by this girl. I took about two steps and then froze when I caught sight of her leather bound butt swinging as she walked away from me. I was in a daze for almost ten seconds until I shook my head and snapped out of it, chasing after her.

"Hey, I asked you something!" I said, catching up with her in no time. She didn't look at me, but I could see the smile she was fighting. I started walking on her left side.

"I know. I'm not required to answer. It's a free country, isn't it?" she shot back, not even glancing at me.

"Hmpf. Doesn't seem too free to me," I said. I didn't want to hurt her feelings, I just wanted to see her reaction. I meant to imply 'your family has ruined the world.' I thought I saw her face twist into hurt, but I couldn't be sure without the voice of her mind. Even though I had just witnessed her harm and kill five of the seven men, I couldn't think of her as one of those monsters. All I could see was the beautiful, innocent girl with the big brown eyes…but instead of having a summer dress and a sweet blush she had a rocking body and was as pale as a ghost.

"No, it's not free at all," she mumbled, mostly to herself. What did that mean? It was free to her, she ruled the world! She looked sad, though.

I got ahead of her and stopped to face her, forcing her to stop, too. "Who are you?" I asked, determined. Her glare returned, and I fought the urge to run away, she looked so mean.

"Leave me the fuck alone!" she said in a menacing tone, getting around me and continuing her escape. _I don't think so._

With two strides I was back in front of her.

"Please?" I said softly. Her face softened again. _Bipolar, aren't we_?

"Believe me, you don't want to know me."

Okay, so what did that mean? Did that mean she knew who I was and that her family wanted me dead, and talking to her might just end my life? Was she telling me to leave her alone for my own safety? This girl was so confusing, it just made me more curious.

"If I guess, will you tell me if I'm right?" I said. Again, she held back a smile.

"Maybe," she said. We started walking again.

I wanted to play with her. Getting it right on the first try might scare her if she didn't recognize who I was. But then again, probably nothing would scare this girl.

"Okay, how about…Darlene?" my first try was met by a stuck out tongue, showing me that wasn't right.

"Doris?" Again, she looked at me as if I were crazy. I laughed.

"Beth?" Her left eyebrow shot up skeptically.

"Nope," she said, "One more try."

"Okay…how about….Bella?" I said finally, waiting for her reaction. She stopped abruptly and quickly turned to face me with wide eyes. She looked at my chest first, then her eyes swept up to mine, and her gaze was unfocused. I could not hear her thoughts, but her emotions were written on her face. She was thinking.

_Yes! It _is _her!_

"I guess I'm right," I said with a smirk. She looked terrified. What could possibly have her so scared?

"What's wrong?" I asked, now concerned. Was she scared of _me?_ That didn't seem likely. I wasn't going to hurt her. And she wasn't going to hurt me. If she wanted to hurt me, she would have done it already.

"Did you find me on purpose?" she whispered. Her terror filled eyes made me feel horrible.

"No, I was just…" what could I possibly tell her? That I went out with some of my family? What if she remembered who I was and she told the Volturi I was here? "I went bowling with some friends, and you looked like you were in trouble, so…"

She seemed to believe me and relaxed a little, and started walking toward a motorcycle that was chained to a broken light pole. She unchained it and swung one leg over the bike and started it. Of course, Catwoman had to have some sort of fast, dangerous vehicle.

"Tell no one of our encounter. I will not speak of it, either. Can you promise me that?" she asked me. Of course I wouldn't talk about it; Carlisle would blow a gasket.

"Yes, I promise," I said, but I grew scared. My fear wasn't of being killed by her family; I became worried that this would be the last time I would see her. She shouldn't matter to me, though. I had met her once as a child, so what if I still had dreams about her? And she was my enemy, obviously from the way she dressed and the way she fought. I shouldn't _want _to see her again. But I did…badly. There was something about her, something special, and not just her beauty. I couldn't read her mind, but it seemed like hers was the only mind I really wanted to decipher. She stared back at me, her brown eyes ablaze. I couldn't read her thoughts, but her face was suddenly like an open book of emotion. In her eyes I saw fear, excitement, and also…sadness? Was she sad at the thought of leaving me too? I had to know if she remembered the little boy at the playground. I had to know if she knew who I was.

"I'm not going to ask you to explain this to me because you seem like you're in a hurry, but am I going to see you again?" I asked hopefully.

"Probably not," she answered sadly. I sighed. Of course not. Her kind was supposed to kill my kind on sight.

"Well, do you know who I am?" I said before thinking my words through. My question could be construed two ways. One, as the boy you met at the playground nine years ago, or two, as the boy from the Cullen family that your folks are so intent upon killing. She surprised me yet again.

Bella smiled for the first time. It was genuine. It lit up her face and a slight blush that had probably been nonexistent for a while made her radiant. She wasn't evil.

"How could I forget you, Edward Cullen? You were my first and only friend," she said. I gasped, and with that, she sped off into the night, leaving me alone and confused.

She remembered me after all this time. So this was what became of Isabella.

I stood there for about a whole minute, watching her black form fade into the distance until I could see no more. God, I hoped I would see her again. This new memory of her grown up and gorgeous would probably haunt my dreams now until the next time we met. Would it be another nine years?

I started to walk home, my mind going a mile a minute.

What happened to her? Hadn't Didyme raised her? Oh….Didyme was dead because of us. She was killed for letting us get away, as Carlisle thought. So Bella did not have a mother for very long. Was that why she had been so terrified of me? She knew who I was, knew she was supposed to kill my family. She would be killed if they knew what happened between us tonight. She would be murdered for letting me escape. "_Leave me the fuck alone!" _she had said. Did those words mean more than what I thought they had?

It was a whole nine years ago that I had seen her, but I never would have expected that sweet little blushing girl in the sundress to become _that._ The men deserved what they got, but still she was a murderer. So she _had _become one of them.

_No,_ a voice in my head said, _she's not a monster, enemy or not. In a way, she saved your life tonight._

Enemy…was she really that to me? I did not hate her, and I did not wish to kill her, so she could not be referred to as my _enemy._

_But she cannot be your friend, either._

I pushed that last thought to the side with a mental '_whatever.'_

Another complication took hold. We could not stay here. If Bella was close, that meant other Volturi members were close, too. Did they track us here? Did they know where we were? Did they come to Washington for us? And especially the little town of Forks. The Volturi were spread out all over America, but why in the world would they come to little old Forks?

The answer was obvious. They came for us.

_What if --_I tried to stop the new thought before it came, but I was too late--_What if Bella was actually on the streets tonight to find me and my brothers? She did not kill me tonight, but maybe her job was just to find us so that someone else could._

That made me sick to my stomach.

But Bella wouldn't do that. No, she wasn't evil, remember? I repeated the words in my head as if they were my mantra.

_Not evil, not evil, not evil._

I neared our hidden house and thought about what to tell my family.

Carlisle would be pissed, of course, by the fact that I had talked to a stranger. This stranger, especially. Should I tell him that the Volturi were in town? I couldn't. He would want to move to save our family. He had every right to.

_I _should want to.

But I did not want to leave. I felt no fear at the possibility of our enemy's presence. I made an agreement with myself. I would tell Carlisle if I found any real evidence that the Volturi were here for us.

And then I would have to leave with them.

_Sure you're not going to tell them?_ the voice of my sister surprised me. I looked up from the grass near my porch. Alice was standing there with her arms crossed, a scowl on her face.

Shit. She would have seen where I was tonight…who I was with. And reading her mind, she saw that I was not going to tell Carlisle in the future.

"Alice…" I said nervously. He eyebrow cocked. She was pissed.

"I can't believe you, Edward! Risking our lives like that! How could you do such a thing? You didn't even attempt to run away from her!" Alice whisper-yelled at me so that no one inside would hear.

"Alice, please calm down," I said. Did she tell them? She must not have because she kept lowering her voice. Worry grew in the pit of my stomach again.

"NO! I _will not_ die because of your stupid naivety, Edward," she said.

"Bella isn't going to hurt us, nor will she ask someone else to hurt us. Plus, even if she did, you would see it before."

"Oh, so now it's _Bella._ You two seem to be _such _friends. Maybe we can all have a tea party and make up. I bet you would like that, wouldn't you?"

"Alice, she's not like them."

"Oh, because you know her so well. She murders a few rapists and you think she's just the best thing to ever come across your lonely, boring life," Alice continued in a huff.

I thought about Alice's words. Seeing Bella again had been the highlight of my last few years. Nothing as exciting as this had happened in so long. Her beautiful face swam in my head, and Alice gasped suddenly. I broke out of my reverie and saw Alice looking up at me, dumbstruck., her mouth agape.

"You want to see her again." She said it as a statement, and I knew it was true, but what could she have seen in the future that made her come to her conclusion?

"Alice? Do you see me seeing her again?" I asked frantically, trying to pick the future from her mind. I saw Bella, but the vision was fuzzy. We were laying on grass, both smiling, but that was it. I couldn't see much past that. Alice turned to me with a new expression, her eyes still unfocused.

"I don't know, Edward."

"You're not going to tell Mom and Dad, are you?" I asked, panicking. She looked down, her eyes focusing again. Her real thoughts were hidden from me. She was translating the Gettysburg Address in French so that I would not know what she was really thinking.

"No. I won't tell them. But I can't say the same for the future. If there is any sign that she or them will hurt us, I _will _tell them everything."

"Okay. Thank you." She shook her head muttering 'the things I do for you.'

I sighed in relief. I would more than likely see Bella again. I was counting on it.

But what would happen when we would see each other again?

A/N: Okay, if you like where this is going, tell me please. This is my second story and I feel like a bit of an amateur being just out of high school. My senior trip is quickly approaching so it might be a little while before I post again. Hmmm …So…Bella's a badass! lol What's going to happen next? It's Bella's POV and a lot more shall be revealed, just click that review button and make my day! Cheers!


	4. Chapter 3: Betrothed

A/N: I don't own Twilight. Stephenie Meyer is one great genius!

Here's Bella's POV

Chapter Three: Betrothed

I have to get away. Now.

Marcus, my so-called father, called me in yesterday to tell me that Aro was coming to Washington with news for _me._ I looked at him with concern…and fear. Why would Aro come all the way from Texas just to talk to me? I suddenly began running my mind through every situation I'd been in for the last few weeks in Washington. Did I do something wrong? Aro liked me, but he never really showed much interest in me until a few years ago.

A few years ago was when…oh God, I didn't even want to think about why he finally started paying attention to me. Caius hated me. He refused to trust me…hell, he sometimes even refused to look at me. That was okay, though. I hated him, too. Always fought the urge to rip out that greasy blonde hair of his and shove it where the sun doesn't shine.

Marcus wouldn't tell me why Aro was coming, but he had a frown on his face, and that worried me. When he saw my look of fear, he assured me that I wasn't in trouble. He said that it was good news, but his words didn't match his expression. Something was wrong. I walked off, pissed.

I hadn't called Marcus "Dad" since my mother was murdered. Nor had I ever called Aro and Caius "Uncle," but that was for different reasons. Aro, Marcus, and Caius were brothers, and I hated each one of them, even my father.

I hated Caius most because he was the one who had carried out my mother's execution. And he did it with utmost joy. I hated Aro the second most because he was the one who had ordered her to be executed. And I hated Marcus because he just sat by without trying to stop his wife's murder by his own brothers.

I could never forget that day at the playground nine years ago. It was--well, from what they told me--the reason that my mother was killed. She had let Carlisle Cullen, the 'enemy' get away, and the consequence had been death. She had always tried to shield me from this horrid life, the life of murderers and devils who used their gifts to rule the world. But her attempts had been futile; I eventually followed in their footsteps, not because I wanted to, but because I had no choice. Now I was truly a monster.

My gift made itself known about the time I hit puberty. Aro tried reading my thoughts once when I was thirteen, but he failed. Jane's torturous gift didn't affect me, either. My gift became more powerful as I got older and used it more. At first, it was just a mental thing. My mind could not be penetrated. Then I was able to branch out my shield into something solid. The shield protected my mind and my body, like a force field of sorts. The only problem was that branching the shield out to protect me physically took all of my concentration. And if I held up the shield too long, I would grow weak and a massive headache would take over my head. So I didn't normally use my gift.

I was afraid that this would anger Aro, the fact that I was stronger than him, but it just made him happier. He liked to have the powerful on his side. I always wished that he had never found out about my power. He promoted me to the top of his guard, the Volturi. Even thinking the name made me shiver in hatred. Every time Aro wishes to speak to me, he asks me either to kill someone or hunt someone down and bring him back to be killed. Which is precisely why I need to leave. Now. Before he can get a hold of me. I mean, sure, I'd killed people before, but I hated doing it, especially when the person was innocent. The rest of the sick fucks on the Volturi loved to kill. They said it was like an adrenaline rush, a high. I thought it was disgusting. Just because we had special abilities didn't mean that we had a right to say who lived and who died, right? Sometimes I was glad that Aro couldn't read my mind, because if he could, he would probably lock me away, accusing me of being a traitor.

Maybe if I snuck out of the back doors of the castle, I could postpone the meeting with Aro. He would be pissed, but he wouldn't do anything to harm me. He liked my gift too much for that. Making sure that no one was around, I rounded the corner of the back hall and made my way to the double doors.

"Isabella, where are you going?" I heard the snaky little voice of Jane just as my hand reached for the knob. Shit. I froze for a few seconds, debating if I should just ignore her and walk out anyway. The chances of her just letting me go were very slim, though, and I turned around slowly.

"Well, Jane, if you must know, I was going outside to pick daisies. Would you like to come with me?" I said sarcastically. She rolled her hate-filled black eyes. She always sucked up to me when the Volturi were around, but she was a complete bitch to me when no one was looking. Everyone thought we were friends, but honestly, I had never said one nice thing to the girl. I mostly just ignored her.

"You do know that Aro is coming to see you, right? I don't think he would like it if his favorite niece would just disappear for a few hours when he obviously has something important going on," she said, the venom and jealousy clear in her voice. I threw her a dirty look and gave up on escaping, heading back to my room. Jane had been bred for this kind of life. Her mother and father had been part of the Volturi, and she was happy to follow in their footsteps, even if she didn't get the special treatment like I did. Her twin brother, Alec, had pursued me a year ago, but Aro did not let him get what he wanted, not that I wanted him to begin with. Alec was conceded and cruel; I could barely stand being alone in a room with him for more than five minutes. I thanked my lucky stars that his manipulative power did not work on me.

Aro arrived an hour later, immediately sending someone to get me from my room. I was told that he wanted to talk to me with the elders, his brothers, in the grand hall. I sighed, dragging my feet out of the room, down two flights of stairs, and reluctantly sat down in the little chair provided in the middle of the room, facing them. I felt small and unimportant, and it was as if I was being interrogated. I fought the urge to bite my lip, trying not to let them see I was nervous. A person had to act cool, confident, and collected in front of Aro and Caius, otherwise they tore you apart.

"Hello, my dear Isabella. It's a pleasure to see you again," Aro said, practically bouncing in his seat. I briefly wondered what could have happened to make him this ecstatic. He looked like a prisoner who had been set free after twenty years of being locked up. I looked at Caius, who had his eyes narrowed at me. Asshole.

When I didn't respond, Aro continued, "I have wonderful news for you." I still did not say anything, but cocked an eyebrow so he knew I was listening. Aro sighed, but the disgusting smile did not leave his face.

"I've chosen a husband for you."

Wait. What did he just say? _I've chosen a husband for you._ Did I hear that right?

"Excuse me?" I finally said. Aro smiled even wider.

"Isabella, we've found the perfect suitor for you. He started working for me a few months ago, and he has one of the most amazing gifts I have ever seen. You two would thrive as a couple. And think of all the abilities your offspring would have! Think of all the power we could add to this organization!" He stood up in his excitement.

I wanted to vomit. And I wanted to do it on him. I started to feel dizzy. Things like this happened pretty often, but most people in the organization were willing participants. Aro liked to match up males and females with certain powers, hoping to get an even more powerful child from the union. It was how Jane and Alec and many others had come to be, but I knew better. It was disgusting, this arranged bullshit. What ever happened to making a child out of love, instead of personal gain? I used to question why the couple even got married if all they wanted was a child and no love was involved, and Marcus eventually explained to me that it was because of jealousy. The 'husband' wanted there to be a marriage because most men did not want his woman sleeping with another man. So if they got married, it would be a sin to cheat, and the man would be allowed to execute his wife. I was completely blown away by all of this when I heard. Mostly, because I knew that most of the men in the Volturi cheated on their wives, so how come if the wife cheated too, she was to be killed, and not the husband for the same crime? It made no sense, but that was just how it worked. But I never thought it would happen to me.

"I…no…I will not take any part in this madness. I will not marry a complete stranger," I said forcefully, but I knew it was no use--Aro owned me, and there was nothing I could do about it.

Aro frowned. "Isabella, do you know what happened to the last naïve girl that refused to follow my orders?" he asked menacingly. I didn't say anything, growing frightened every second. I knew Aro would never kill me, but there were other things he could do, like torture me until I went insane.

"I had her beheaded, Isabella. That is what happens when you do not follow my orders. Do you want rid of that pretty little face of yours, Isabella?"

I swallowed. Hard. Tearing my eyes away from Aro, I gazed at my father. He was looking down at his hands, the coward…too scared to face me. I looked at Caius next. The jerk was smirking. I looked back at Aro and shook my head in reference to his question. He smiled again, satisfied with my surrender.

"Anyway," he continued, "you will be meeting him tomorrow after his flight. He's very anxious to meet you, Isabella."

I sighed silently. There was no way I was going through with this.

"May I ask his name, sir?" I said quietly, feigning interest. If I played a façade well enough, Aro might leave me alone for the rest of the night. Aro smiled at me once more.

"His name is James."

**A/N: Guys, I'm so sorry that took so long! And this chapter was supposed to be so much longer, but I decided that those of you who want to read this story have the right to read it, so I posted what I had so far. I almost deleted this story, too, because it's nothing like I've ever written. I got the idea in a dream after I watched Watchmen, the movie about superheroes, and the dream bothered me so much I just had to write it down. Then I thought no one would like it because it is just so strange and different, but the plot is still nagging my brain, so I'm going to continue it, and because I'll feel like a coward if I gave up on it. But I do really appreciate the reviews and favorites, so thanks.**

**Also, I have another story called Stranded. You should go check it out! It's a lot more realistic than this one : )**


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